Jabra in your ear
EARBUDS: ELITE 85T HAS ACTIVE NOISE CANCELLATION
Hearable devices keep pushing the boundaries and now a new bar is set.
Another year, another leap forward in hearables. Anyone trying the latest AirPods Pro from Apple or Galaxy Buds+ from Samsung will be convinced they never have to buy another.
So satisfying is the experience, so good the sound, so comfortable the wear, it will seem as if hearable devices have reached the peak of their evolution.
If that sounds familiar, you may be feeling nostalgic for 2013, when every major manufacturer produced a magnificent handset that suggested no more improvement was needed.
Samsung’s S4 drew the Koreans level with Apple, despite the iPhone 5 expanding the range with the C and S models.
Huawei finally arrived on the main stage, with the P6 claiming laurels for the thinnest smartphone in the world.
HTC took its last serious bow with the One M7, named best new mobile device at the Mobile World Congress that year, thanks to numerous design advances.
The Nokia Lumia 1020 was “the cameraphone to end all cameraphones”, according to Verge. LG stunned the market by almost eliminating the bezel
on the sides of the G2 and claiming that its software could learn and adapt from user behaviour.
Why would any manufacturer ever try to improve on the peak of handset evolution? Yet, they did. And still do.
Expect the same from earbuds. Which tells us that, a decade or so from now, the capabilities of hearables will be outrageous.
Gyroscopes and accelerometers for positioning and exercise tracking, enhanced bone conduction with pro-level microphones, biosensors for anything from heart rate to brain electrical activity, instant translation of any language and artificial intelligence connecting everything, await these devices.
A taste of that future already exists.
Jabra, which remains one of the few brands to innovate in hearables without the benefit of a smartphone ecosystem, claimed the world’s first wireless stereo earbuds with integrated heartrate monitor back in 2014, with the Sports Pulse.
At the end of last year, it unveiled its new flagship, the Jabra Elite 85t, and reminded the world that Apple and Samsung did not own the hearable category.
That was despite the former debuting the AirPods Pro shortly before and claiming leadership in the category of active noise cancellation – abbreviated as ANC, but having little to do with SA’s political chaos. Rather, it is the gold standard in ensuring that unwanted noise does not degrade sounds reaching the ear.
The 85t, as Jabra’s first earbuds with ANC, has clearly gone head-to-head with the AirPods. Even their prices are similar – about R5 000.
Consider these comparisons: 5½ hours battery life, compared to 4½ for the AirPods Pro (both go to 24 hours with their charging cases); “hear-through” mode and adaptive listening, compared to Apple’s Transparency Mode and adaptive equalisation (they mean similar things); adjustable ANC versus “plain” old ANC; voice assistance from Siri and Google Assistant versus “plain” old Siri…
Here’s a hearable that may not sound obviously better, but takes each subcategory of builtin technology a small step further.
The Jabra Sound+ app offers more control and guidance than the AirPods device option on an iPhone. Mostly, it allows a level of personalisation that would be alien to Apple users.
Even the unboxing experience is superior: the 85t reveals itself in layers, adding both information and accessories. Four different plug sizes are provided to personalise the device further.
None of this will convince AirPods users. After all, they have already convinced themselves that the stalks sticking out of their ears don’t look ridiculous.
But Android users can’t go wrong with the Jabra Elite 85t.
Oh, and in another decade or so, they may not even have to worry about phone brands. Chances are, the handset will disappear completely into the earbuds.
Arthur Goldstuck is founder of World Wide Worx and editor-inchief of Gadget.co.za Follow him on Twitter and Instagram on @art2gee